10 Creative Upcycling Ideas Anyone – Even the Non-Crafty – Can Do

Upcycling is one of the best things you can do both to save money, and to reduce waste. Sustainability can become a way of life through simple reuse, whether practical or decorative. That can also reduce pollution and help to shrink landfills. It is such an easy way to be a responsible consumer while teaching you to appreciate what you already have.

But not everyone is that crafty, and you might feel that you don’t have what it takes to upcycle anything worth keeping. But never fear – there are plenty of interesting and easy-to-make items that make upcycling a breeze.

Do you have a bunch of little candle pieces just sitting around, unused? Maybe they are tiny stumps left over from tapers that you can no longer use, or leftover wax with the wick completely burned away. You can actually melt all of these together to make an interesting, layered candle with a fresh wick. Some people have spent money on expensive candle making equipment. But you don’t have to use anything special; just try a small, glass holder and a small wick, and you are done.

These adorable mini journals are nice and easy to make, and they would make great stocking stuffers or little gifts. They use box-board from old packaging, and bit of paper from an old art magazine. But any scrap paper sitting around would technically do. You could decorate the outside, as well.

It would have been nice if they had provided pictures with this tutorial, but it is still a cool idea. You can build little planes out of soda cans, or larger one from the tall iced tea cans from brands like Sobe or Arizona. Hang them up from your ceiling, or play with them. Just be careful of sharp edges when cutting.

What do you do with an old bike tire when you don’t need it anymore? This person took the innertube and created a waterproof, flexible wallet complete with card slots. It is functional, it’s protective and it doesn’t look half bad. All it takes is a little cutting and sewing, as well. You need a sewing machine, however, as it will be too thick to easily sew with a regular needle.

Becky Haas is an avid music lover and craft enthusiast who took her two passions and combined them for this creative jewelry. Made out of old CD’s, she went a bit further than some of the others you see around. I enjoy the general process she uses to make the jewelry, and I think you could use some nice shapes like hearts or stars or moons.

One AA battery, an old speaker, an audio cable and an Altoid tin…that is all that is needed to make a nice little speaker through completely upcycled materials. The instructions might seem a little complicated but they show you every step of the way, so by the time you are done it will have been much easier than you expected. The speaker also works well, with a nice sound generated from the tin itself.

A couple bucks spent at the hardware store and an old wine bottle are all that is needed for this fascinating little tiki torch. What a wonderful recycling idea for the gardeners! It also makes a handy holder to attach to the wall, where you settle in the bottle to keep secured outdoors. The best part is it can be reused.

I have seen quite a few chairs made of upcycled materials during the past couple of years. But this one is really special, using an old lounge frame and some scrapes of role. It looks pretty comfortable, all things considered, and it quite stylish.

This is another tutorial that could have done with pictures. But I love the idea: You take old, plastic bottles and string them together, adding in some Christmas lights to light it up. It wouldn’t give off much light, but it would look really great hanging just about anywhere.

A very simple sewing job: You take old, ratty towels you don’t want anymore and cut them into squares for dish towels. This person used a sewing machine with a serger to clean up the edges. But if you aren’t so handy with a needle and thread, you can just cut them into pieces and leave the ends undone. They won’t look as clean, but they will work well enough.

Conclusion

You don’t have to be a craft genius to enjoy the benefits of DIY. Upcycling is possible and easy when you have the right idea.

Hi, I was wondering if you have seen *anywhere* directions for using old bike inner tubes for making journal covers? I have a stack of old tubes and no money to purchase the expensive journals I’ve seen online. A cycling friend’s birthday is coming up and I would love to make him a journal with a cycling theme.

Hello–Thanks for posting about our easy DIY recycled wine bottle tiki torch featured on Design Sponge.
I am asking that you please list a photo credit for the images you are using on your webpost back to its original source — http://www.gerardotandco.com – Erik Anderson. This is a copyrighted photo. Since we are a marketing and design firm, it is important to us to link our work back to us. Especially the Torche bottle, which is a package design and campaign project we designed (Mark Gerardot) with the tiki torch kit featured on our website and in our portfolio of work.
We provide a tutorial and list of items for making this on our original post, which may be of interest to your readers. Otherwise, please switch out this picture for one you have taken yourself.

Recycle

Go Green, Go Solar!

Going solar is one of the best ways you can cut your footprint and your bills at the same time. Check out the what solar panels cost at your house, or head over to Cost of Solar to get your free report on how much solar could save you…and the planet!

Search the IM Network

The content produced by this site is for entertainment purposes only. Opinions and comments published on this site may not be sanctioned by, and do not necessarily represent the views of Sustainable Enterprises Media, Inc., its owners, sponsors, affiliates, or subsidiaries.

Sustainablog works in cooperation with the Important Media network of blogs working to make the world a better, greener place.

Creative Commons

All posts on sustainablog are licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 license. You are free to reuse and remix our content provided you link back to the original post, and offer your new work under a similar license. Please note that some elements of posts (images, videos) may come with different licensing terms.